Armin Laschet of the Christian Democrats (CDU), Olaf Scholz of the Social Democrats (SPD) and Annalena Baerbock of the Greens are all in the running.

Scholz is currently leading in the polls.

Each day, dpa gives you the key mood and memes from the campaign trail.

 

THEME OF THE DAY: BLACK ZERO NO MORE?

One of Germany’s most prized economic pillars of recent years is the so-called “schwarze Null,” or “black zero.” This signifies a balanced budget, with no new public debt. The pandemic has put paid to this target for now, but it’s still a point of principle for the conservatives, who have been in charge of government for the last 16 years. For the SPD, with power within their grasp, it’s clearly no sacred cow: The black zero is a “political goal, not a law,” SPD boss Saskia Esken told reporters on Thursday. Tackling today’s challenges without new debt was “voodoo,” she said.

 

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Sometimes it helps to use your head and not your larynx.”

– Laschet gives his retort to climate activists heckling him in the town of Rottenburg on Wednesday.

 

TWEET OF THE DAY

“Dear political opponents, freedom of expression is also the freedom to express opinions others may find difficult! Best wishes, hgm”

– CDU politician Hans-Georg Maassen (@HGMaassen) responds to many months of political attacks on him personally for his more right-wing views and attacks on his party for not expelling him.

 

GOOD DAY: EMOJIS

The Tagesspiegel newspaper did a comprehensive trawl through parties’ and candidates’ social media feeds, and it’s full of insights. For example, none of the candidates for chancellor are in the top six most popular Twitter feeds, a list dominated by smaller parties. Among the party leaders, the Free Democrats’ Christian Lindner, Baerbock and the Alternative for Germany’s Alice Weidel are way out in front when it comes to social media followers. The SPD and the Greens have posted far more than the CDU/CSU. And Laschet’s most frequently used emojis are all national flags – with not a smiley in sight.

 

BAD DAY: IMPATIENT POLITICIANS

SPD chief Norbert Walter-Borjans said on Thursday that he expected both the first- and second-placed parties after the elections to hold coalition talks. History indicates it is possible for the second-placed party to form a government – the last time was however in the ’70s. Such parallel talks will not mean a fast start to the already tortuous process of coalition building in Germany.